Top News:
Re/code:
Apple wants local TV stations in its TV service, complicating negotiations with broadcast TV networks; service may not be ready launch this fall as Apple hoped — Apple Wants Local TV in Its Web TV Service, Which Could Lead to Delays — If Apple launches a TV service …
Discussion:
Multichannel News, Macworld, Washington Post, Cult of Mac, Mashable, Engadget, The Verge, App Advice, Business Insider, AppleInsider, MacRumors, iMore, @alexjamesfitz, 9to5Mac and @modestproposal1
Alan Travis / Guardian:
Theresa May's plan to censor TV shows condemned by Tory cabinet colleague — Exclusive: Former culture secretary Sajid Javid told prime minister he was unable to support home secretary's proposal as it infringed free speech — A plan by the home secretary to introduce counter-extremism powers …
Claire Atkinson / New York Post:
Disney/Univision pump $30M into Fusion network — Sofia Vergara will be starring in a show on Fusion about her life. — Fusion is getting a cash infusion. — The news and pop-culture multiplatform outlet has received commitments from its owners — Disney and Univision …
Discussion:
Media Wire Daily, FishbowlNY and TVNewser
Sean Gallagher / Ars Technica:
Chinese Army newspaper calls for military role in Internet culture war — Claims West and “ideological traitors” use Internet to weaken Party's authority. — An article published today in the People's Liberation Army Daily, the official newspaper of China's military—and reprinted in part by Qiushi …
Discussion:
Quartz, Reuters, Silicon Republic, Defense Systems, RFA and The Diplomat
Jon Russell / TechCrunch:
With 205M active users, messaging app Line testing a $2/month music streaming app in Thailand — Messaging App Firm Line Is Testing A $2 Per Month Music Streaming Service — Line, the Japanese messaging app with 205 million active users, is continuing its push into entertainment services …
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business
Elizabeth Jensen / NPR:
NPR will no longer feature a host's book on his or her own show — (Not) By The Book: On NPR Authors And NPR Airtime — NPR hosts, correspondents, producers and contributors write an awful lot of books, many of them eagerly anticipated by listeners who turn them into bestsellers.
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
Sony Uses Copyright To Force Verge To Takedown Its Copy Of Sony's Spotify Contract — Well, well. A few days ago, the Verge got a huge scoop in the form of Sony's original US contract with Spotify, leading to a ton of discussion (mostly focused around the huge “advances” that Spotify guaranteed Sony …
Discussion:
Business Insider and Digital Music News
Janko Roettgers / Variety:
Sources: Samsung's media unit, responsible for Milk Music, Milk Video, and Milk VR, lays off up to 15% of staff — Samsung's Content Unit Hit by Layoffs, Exec Departure (Exclusive) — Samsung's Media Solutions Center America, which is responsible for the company's Milk Music and Milk Video services …
Discussion:
Ubergizmo and Business Insider
Todd Spangler / Variety:
DirecTV Launches Kids TV App for Apple Mobile Devices — DirecTV, the No. 1 U.S. satellite TV broadcaster, debuted a dedicated mobile-video app designed for children 5 to 10 available to subscribers for no additional charge. — The new DirecTV Kids app includes a selection of “kid-friendly” …
Discussion:
Multichannel News
Kerry A. Dolan / Forbes:
Charges Dropped In Defamation Trial Against Angolan Journalist Rafael Marques — In a surprise development, the defamation charges against journalist Rafael Marques de Morais were dropped Thursday by the Angolan military generals who had brought them. — Marques had been charged …
Discussion:
VICE News, Guardian, Associated Press and Index on Censorship
Shalini Ramachandran / Wall Street Journal:
FCC Chairman Reached Out to Time Warner Cable, Charter CEOs — FCC's Tom Wheeler indicated agency not opposed to any and all potential cable deals — Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler has a message for cable chiefs: just because regulators leaned against the Comcast Corp. …
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, CNBC, The Hill and Reuters